Description

Granite boulders scattered amongst giant sequoia, fir, pine and cedar forest. Central Sierra Nevada, California. Some boulders lie right next to some of the largest trees on earth, the giant sequoias. Some boulders are in the lower elevation foothill range and are good for winter. There's bouldering at 11,000 feet that requires backpacking in. The boulders tend to be lichen filled slabs but occasionally you'll come across some High Sierra bomber quartz monzonite. Kind of similar stone to the Tamarack boulders in Yosemite, or a bit chossier than the stone at Courtright Resv. Some of it is slightly overhanging, but mostly slabs and vertical probs(V0-V6). Not much hard bouldering has been done here, to my knowledge. The smaller lines that tend to be dirty are just not as classic as the big clean lines of Yosemite or Bishop. Most of the boulders are in clusters or grouped together, like the General Sherman new parking lot area and the Eli's Paradise boulders (also known as the Sunset Rock trail boulders). This makes it good for some circuit bouldering. Some will require hiking in 5 to 20 mins. If you keep your eyes peeled while driving through the park, you'll also spot a good sized number of climbable boulders. There is a lot of potential for FA's here so if you like hiking, exploring, & cleaning...with no climbers around; just some occasional hikers, this place could be worthwile for a visit. This is not a real bouldering destination area though. Best to visit for many days and combine some cragging, hiking, etc. The season at around 7000' is May to November, with some winter/spring potential in the foothills zone(2000'-4500'). Road construction with delays is always possible when driving into the park, especially from the south on hwy198. A major 10 year road construction plan is being done here. Check with the Park about delays and pass through schedules. nps.gov/seki/index.htm